Electric switch.



PATENTED AUG. 11, 1903.

G. C. GOULD.

ELECTRIC SWITCH.

APPLIOATION FILED MAR. 19. 1902.

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UNITED STATES Patented August 11, 190s.

PATENT OFFICE.

CORNELIUS C. GOULD, .OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR. OF SIXTEEN TWENTY-SEVENTHS TO MAXWELL SOMMERVILLE AND LEWIS B. MATHIAS, OFPHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, WALTER C. TIMM, JR, AND DEVERE VVORRELL, OF MORTONQPENNSYLVANIA, AND WILLIAM \V. MORTON, OF CAMDEN, NEWJERSEY. I

ELECTRIC SWITCH.

$1 ECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,966, dated August 11, 1903.

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, OoENELIUsG. GOULD, a citizen of the United States, whose residence and post-oflice address is 2518 South Fifteenth 5 street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Switches, of which the following is a specification, accompanied by drawings.

My invention relates, broadly, to switches and switching apparatus for changing the relationsofelectriccircuits; anditisapplicable to electric-light circuits, telephone and telegraph circuits,electric signaling, and the like.

One of the objects of my invention is to enable the relations of electric circuits to be readily changed and controlled as desired by means of a single piece of apparatus which is particularly applicable to those cases where a plurality of branches are adapted to be energized from a main line and it is required to switch from one branch to another.

Another object of my invention is to enable the switching apparatus to be securely held or looked in any desired position to complete circuit, whereby certainty of operation is secured and liability of derangement of the apparatus by means of jars or knocks prevented.

Further objects of my invention will hereinafter appear in the accompanying specification.

To these ends my invention consists in means for carrying out the above objects embodied in the apparatus and devices having the general mode of operation, as hereinafter fully described and shown in the accompanying specification and drawings, in which- Figure l is a front elevation, partly broken away, of a switching device embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of said device, partlyin section. Fig. 3 isa side elevation of the same, partly in section, one of the sides being removed. Fig. 4 is a sectional plan view on the line 1 1 of Fig. 1. Fig. 5is

a front view of a modified form of apparatus. My invention may be illustrated in many and various forms; but that form of apparatus illustrated in the accompanying drawings Application filed March 19,1902. Serial No. 98,932. (No model.)

and hereinafter described has been found suitable and convenient for carrying out the objects of my invention.

' Referring to the drawings, upon a suitable base a, which may be hollow and a portion of which is shown broken away, is secured a base-plate b, as by screws 0, the base and baseplate forming a stand for the apparatus. The

complete apparatus or'switching device as a whole is designed to be portable, so that it may be readily used in any situation to which it is applicable, as upon an office-desk or in a railway-train or aflixed to a switchboard .or wall in a power-station.

Suitably supported upon the base-plate b are arranged contacts, in this instance oppositely-located supports 01 being shown secured to the plate I) in an upright or substantially vertical position and connected at the top by a plate 6-, the'supports and top plate forming togethena framework for supporting the contacts.

The supports d are provided, preferably, on their inwardly-facing sides with series of contacts f, comprising individual contacts 9, shown in this instance arranged in pairs and each having a binding-screw and nut h, preferably on the outside of the supports, for the attachment of circuit-wires. p

The contact-carrierj is suitably mounted in connection with the apparatus, and means are provided whereby the contacts on the carrier and those on the frame may be moved relatively to each other in such manner that circuit may be completed between the contacts on the carrier and those on the frame. As shown in this instance, the framework is stationary, and the earrierj is movable relatively thereto, and the pluralityor series of contacts f f are carried by the supports (1, while a lesser number, in this instance shown as two pairs of cooperating contacts 70 7c, are provided on the carrier j, and the carrier is so mounted that it may be moved to complete circuit between its contacts k 70 and any of those of the seriesf f. In order to provide for such movement of the carrierj as described, it is preferable to so mount it relative to the supports and their contacts that it is movable in two directions relative to said supports, or, in other words, I prefer to so mount the carrier that it may have movementlongitudinally or in a direction substantially parallel to the supports, while at the same time it may be moved to and from them. Therefore the carrier by such mounting may be moved along the series of contacts and to and from the same to complete circuit between the contacts on the carrier and thoseof the series.

The carrier may be conveniently slidably and pivotally mounted, as shown, a rod Z being connected to theframe of the apparatus, so that its length extends substantially parallel to the side supports d, and carrier j is then connected to a sleeve 0, adapted to slide upon the rod Z and to turn thereon about said rod. The carrier for convenience should extend between the supports cl d, so that by turning it to one side or the other of the rod Zcircuit may be completed between the contacts on the carrier and those on either support.

It may be here stated that my invention does not necessarily contemplate a plurality of supports or two supports 01, as shown in the drawings; but one support might be provided with a plurality of contacts therein and the carrier may be slidably and pivotally mounted relatively thereto. Such construction might be found desirable where it was unnecessary to use so many contactsybut with two supports provided with inwardlyfacing contacts a great variety of changes in circuits are provided for within asmall space, which is a great advantage.

Preferably that portion of the carrier extending between the supports 01 d is made of insulating material, so that the contacts 7c 70, connected thereto, are insulated from each other. It will be seen that it the main-line wires or thewires of an electric circuit are connected to contacts 7t 7c, while branch circuits, as light-circuits or telephone or telegraph circuits, are connected to the bindingposts it the main line may be switched to any branch that is desired and the circuit com pleted therewith between the contacts on the carrier and the contacts on a support to which the particular branch circuit is connected.

It is desirable to provide means for holding the carrier and its contacts in any particular position in which the circuit is completed. While this may be done in a variety of ways, according to my construction I provide the apparatus with plates p, connected to the framing, .which plates have serrated edges, the serrations or teeth q q of which should be formed substantially hook-shaped, as shown in Fig. 1, such teeth forming a means for holding the carrierj in any desired position to maintain the circuit closed. For this purpose an arm 7' extends from the carrier, to which it is connected, adjacent to the serrated edges of the plates p, so that the arm a" spring t.

may enter between any two of the teeth g. In order to facilitate the locking of the apparatus, means are provided normally acting to retract the carrierj in one direction along the rod Z, as shown, a spring-actuated roller 3 being mounted on the apparatus, the actuatingspring t of which is connected at one end to a bracket 7.6 and at the other to the roller 8, while a cord or ribbon o is wound upon the roller and connected thereto at one end, while at the other end said cord or ribbon o is connected to the carrierj, as at the point to on the arm 1". By the arrangement described the tension of the spring tends to move the carrier j along the rod Z, so that when the rod 1 is moved between two of the teeth q of the plate 1) the carrier will be locked or held against the tension of the Means are then provided for returning the carrier j to its normal position by means of gravity, it being intended that the normal position of the carrier shall be with the arm 1" resting at the bottom portion m of the serrated edges of the plates 19. The carrier may be moved to normal position by means of any suitable weight. connected there to; but for convenience I show a hook y, connected to arm r, as in telephone apparatus, so that the weight for returning the carrierj to normal position at w by gravity may be a telephone-receiver when my switch is used in connection with telephone circuits and apparatus. Further means are provided for looking the carrier when circuit is completed between its contacts and those of the supports, this further locking means being preferably connected with the contacts themselves and so designed that lateral movement of the carrier on its pivot is prevented. In the drawings the carrier is shown as having vertical and horizontal movement; but the terms vertical and horizontal only apply in a case where the apparatus is arranged upright, as shown, and in apparatus built as described the means for locking the contacts to each other is designed to prevent this horizontal movement of the carrier.

The contacts is on the carrier are prefer= ably formed of spring-clips, each provided with an aperture 2, which may be of the form shown in Figs. 2 and 3, while the contacts carried by the supports 9 each has a head 1 with rounded shoulders 2, the construction and arrangement being such that when circuit is completed between the contact on the carrier and one of those on the support d the head 1 of said contact will enter the apertures z of the spring-clips, as shown in plan View in Fig. 4, Where a circuit is shown completed, and thus securely hold or look the contacts together. The contacts may be readily separated by a push or pull on the outer end of the carrierj.

In Fig. 5 a modification is shown of the plate provided with serrations, in this instance it not being necessary to provide means between the contacts for locking them to- IID gether to prevent lateral movement of the carrier, whereby the contacts might be separated; but the serrations on the locking-plate are constructed to provide for this contingency. As shown,there are projecting shoulders 3 at each indentation or serration of the locking-plate, so that when the arm 7" of carrierj is placed within one of the indentations the tension of the springi tends to pull the arm r against the flat portion 4 of the indentation,while the projection 3 prevents lateral movement of said arm 1'. a

Further means are provided for changing and Varying the relations of electric circuits connected to my switching apparatus or switching device. As shown, the top plate 6 is provided with contacts, to which branch circuits may be connected, and contacts 5 5, insulated from each other,are arranged on carrier j, adapted to cooperate with the contacts connected to the plate e. In the sectional views of Figs. 2 and 3 a holder 6 of insulating material is shown connected to the plate 6. WVithin said holder are provided springclips 7 of conducting material, while contacts in the form of screws 8 form additional means for the connection of circuits to the apparatus. \Vhen the carrierj is moved to its greatest extent in the direction to which it is normally retracted by means of spring t, the contacts 5 5 on the carrier are adapted to enter within the holder 6 and complete circuit with spring-clip 7 and contacts 8.

Obviously, as hereinbefore stated, some features of my invention may be used without other features and may be embodied in widely-varying forms. For this reason,without enumerating equivalents nor limiting myself to the construction shown and described,

I claim, and desire to obtain by Letters Patent, the following:

1. In an electric switch, the combination of a support provided with contacts, a carrier rovided with contacts and bodily movable substantially parallel to said support and to and from the same, whereby circuit may be completed between the contacts on the support and those on the carrier, and means for locking the contacts to each other when circuit is so completed, forsubstantially the purposes set forth.

2. In an electric switch, the combination of a series of contacts provided with heads, a carrier provided with contacts consisting of spring-clips having apertures therein, and means for moving said carrier to complete circuit between its contacts and any of those of the series, whereby when circuit is so completed the head of a contact enters the apertures in the clips and forms a lock, for substantially the purposes set forth.

3. In an electric switch, the combination of oppositely-located supports provided with contacts, a carrier provided with contacts, and means whereby said carrier may be moved to complete circuit between its contacts and any of those on the supports, and means in the contactsfor locking the contacts to each other when circuit is so completed, for substantially the purposes set forth.

4. In an electric switch, the combination of oppositely -located supports provided with contacts, a carrier provided with contacts, and means whereby said carrier may be moved to complete circuit between its contacts and any of those on the supports, means in the contacts for locking the contacts to each other and means for locking the carrier to the support when circuit is so completed, for substantially the purposes set forth.

5. In an electric switch, the combination of oppositely-located supports provided with contacts, a carrier provided with contacts, means whereby said carrier may be moved to complete circuit between its contacts and any of those on the supports, a spring normally acting to retract said carrier in one direction and a plate provided with straight serrated edges for locking the carrier against the tension of the spring when circuit is completed, for substantially the purposes set forth.

6. In an electric switch, the combination of a contact provided with a head and a cooperating contact consisting of spring-clips provided with apertures, whereby when circuit is completed, said head enters the apertures in the clips and locks the contacts together, for substantially the purposes set forth.

7. In an electric switch, the combination of a frame, series of contacts on the sides thereof, contacts on the end thereof, and a carrier movable within the frame and provided with contacts whereby circuit may be completed between its contacts and those on the sides and end of the frame, for substantially the purposes set forth.

8. In an electric switch, the combination of a frame, series of contacts on the sides thereof, contacts on the end thereof, and a carrier movable within the frame and provided with contacts whereby circuit may be completed between its contacts and those on the sides and end of the frame, and means for maintaining the carrier in any position to which it is moved to complete circuit, for substantially the purposes set forth.

9. In an electric switch, the combination of a frame, a plurality of series of contacts thereon, a carrier movable within the frame and provided with contacts whereby circuit may be completed between its contacts and the contacts of any series on the frame, and means in the contacts for locking them to each other when circuit is completed, for substantially the purposes set forth.

10. In an electric switch, the combination of a frame, a series of contacts on the sides thereof, contacts on the end thereof, a carrier movable within the frame and provided with contacts whereby circuit may be completed between its contacts and those on the sides and end of the frame, and plates connected to the frame provided with serrated edges for locking the carrierin position when circuit is completed between its contacts and any of those on the sides of the frame, for substantially the purposes set forth.

11. In an electric switch, a series of contacts, contacts adapted to cooperate with those of the series, and means for moving the series of contacts and the cooperating contacts relatively to each other, whereby circuit may be completed between the cooperating contacts and the individual contacts of the series, and means in the contacts for locking them to each other, substantially as set forth.

12. In an electric switch, a series of contacts, contacts adapted to cooperate with those of the series, and means for moving the series of contacts and the cooperating contacts in two directions relatively to each other,

whereby circuit may be completed between the cooperating contacts and the individual contacts of the series and means for locking the contacts to each other, for substantially the purposes setforth.

13. In an electric switch, the combination of a series of contacts and a pivoted and slidable carrier provided with contacts adapted to cooperate with the contacts of said series, whereby circuit may be completed between the contacts on the carrier and theindividual contacts of the series, and means for locking the contacts to each other, for substantially the purposes set forth.

14. In an electric switch, the combination of oppositely-arranged supports, series of contacts on the inner faces thereof, a rod extending substantially parallel to said supports, a carrier slidably and pivotally mounted on said rod and provided with locking-contacts adapted to cooperate with the series of contacts on said supports and lock the carrier against movement to and from the supports, for substantially the purposes set forth.

15. In an electric switch, the combination of a support, series of contacts thereon, a carrier movable in two directions relatively to the said contacts and provided with contacts, whereby circuit may be completed between the contacts on the carrier and those on the support, and means on the carrier cooperating with means on the said support which has the series of contacts, for locking the carrier to the said support when circuit is completed, substantially as set forth.

16. In an electric switch, the combination of a support, a plurality of series of contacts thereon, a carrier provided with contacts, means for moving the carrier and support relatively to each other in two directions, whereby circuit may be completed between the contacts on the carrier and the contacts of any series on the support, and means for locking said carrier and support together when circuit is completed, for substantially the purposes set forth.

17. In an electric switch, the combination of a support, a plurality of series of contacts thereon, a carrier provided with contacts,

means for moving the carrier and support relatively to each other in two directions, whereby circuit may be completed between the contacts on the carrier and the contacts of any series on the support, means for locking said carrier and support. together when circuit is completed, and means normally acting to retract the carrier to normal position, for substantially the purposes set forth.

18. In an electric switch, the combination of oppositely-located supports, series of contacts thereon, plates connected to the supports and provided with serrated edges, a carrier provided with contacts and slidably and pivotally mounted relative to said supports and extending between said plates, whereby the carrier may be held by the serrations of said plates to maintain circuit completed between the contacts on the carrier and the contacts on the supports, for substantially the purposes set forth.

19. In an electric switch, the combination of a support, a plurality of contacts thereon, a plate connected to said support and provided with serrated edges, a carrier adapted to engage directly with said serrated edges and provided with contacts and movable relatively to said support, whereby'the carrier may be locked by the serrations of said plate to maintain circuit completed between the contacts on the carrier and any of the contacts on the support, for substantially the purposes set forth.

20. In an electric switch, the combination of a support and contacts thereon, a carrier provided with contacts cooperating with the contacts on the support, and a plate provided with a serrated edge, said carrier being adapted to engage directly with the serrations of the plate for locking the carrier in different positions, for substantially the purposes set forth.

21. In an electric switch, the combination of a series of contacts, a carrier provided with contacts cooperating therewith, means normally acting to move the carrier in one direction and a plate provided with a serrated edge, said carrier being adapted to engage directly with the serrations of the plate for looking the carrier in different positions, for substantially the purposes set forth.

22. In an electric switch, the combination of oppositely-located supports provided with contacts on their inwardly-facin g sides, a carrier pivoted to swing between said supports and adapted to be moved longitudinally relatively thereto, contacts on said carrier adapted to cooperate with the contacts on said supports, means normally acting to retract the carrier longitudinallyin one direction, means for returning the carrier to normal position by gravity, and means for locking the carrier in any desired position to maintain circnit closed, for substantially the purposes set forth.

23. In an electric switch, the combination of a support provided with contacts, a carrier movable substantially parallel to the support and provided with contacts, means normally acting to retract said carrier in one direction parallel to the support, means for returning the carrier to normal position in the opposite direction by gravity, and means for holding the carrier in a given position to complete circuit, for substantially the purposes set forth.

24. The combination of a support provided with contacts, a carrier provided with contacts cooperating with those on the support, and means in the contacts for locking the contacts to each other and means for locking the carrier to the support when circuit is completed, substantially as and for the purposes set forth. 7

25. In an electric switch, the combination York.

' CORNELIUS C. GOULD.

Witnesses:

E. VAN ZANDT, HERBERT G. OGDEN, Jr. 

